Wilderness Island review

Wilderness Island is a place where you can truly get away from the hustle and bustle of everyday life and just enjoy yourself in the arms of Mother Nature. It's a place where you can shut out the digital world (if you want to), grab a good book to read with the sea breeze in your face or enjoy the calm seas right at your doorstep.

In my own personal opinion, the weather during the week I was there played a big part in my whole experience at the Island. The winds were rather strong at the beginning of the week but we had clear, blue skies. Mid-week, the wind died down and it became a little muggy and by the end of the week, the heavens opened and continued to rain for the next 3 days! I guessed the weather must've affected the fishing as well.

Some of the things I loved about this trip:

1. Got to experience a true camp-style fishing holiday.
2. Got to witness a spectacular sunset as well as a clear night with shimmering stars in the sky.
3. Some surprisingly good fishing just off the rocks at both the North and South end of the Island.
4. Great food cooked up by guest chef, Joel.
5. Kayaking on the Hobie Outback and seeing such beautiful and rugged landscape.
6. Getting my first big fish on a popper.
7. Fishing in the mangrove creek system where all sorts of fish were hooked up.
8. Having a hot salt water shower on the beach for the first time.
9. Meeting a great bunch of anglers that were very easy-going and fun.
10. Meeting Jim & Kim (the hosts), who were very gracious and ever-helpful in making sure we were comfortable.

Some of the things that I could have done without:

1. The bloody sandflies!! There's just no escaping them except covering yourself from head to toe and spraying insect repellent with DEET all over the other exposed parts. I even wore socks pulled over my pants!
2. The flies. There are just millions of them, buzzing all over and landing on you. Swatting them away is a futile effort.
3. The fishing was rather poor out at Burnside Island. I was expecting to catch like 10-20 fishes per day of fishing but instead I caught 5, 2 & 3 fishes respectively for the 3 days of fishing out at Burnside. The big fish that were caught by the other anglers were also few and far between. A whole lot of effort kayaking to the fishing spot but very little fish being caught. I must admit that maybe my fishing skills aren't that great but I thought the remoteness of the area would have healthy numbers of fish. I travelled quite a long distance for this trip but was really disappointed with the fishing. The weather could have played a part, I don't know. Some of the other anglers did mentioned that this trip was the poorest they've experienced since the last few years they've been here.
4. Having seen the Wilderness Island website and taken a brochure at Exmouth, I was also expecting to have fresh seafood like fish, mussels, mud crabs and such on the menu. Unfortunately, we had fish only on the last day as the main course and we didn't get to eat any mud crabs. What a shame!

Maybe I had set my expectations too high prior to this trip. The fishing could have been affected by various number of reasons, I don't know. But I leave the place with some good memories and met some great, new friends.

Tackle review - Shimano Curado I & Shimano TCurve Revolution Travel Rod Bait Cast

I've been thinking of getting a baitcast outfit to try. Took the plunge and got the Shimano Curado I 201HG and the Shimano TCurve Revolution Travel Bait Cast rod.

Reel review

The reel is spooled with Spiderwire Stealth 15lb braid and connected to Black Magic 20lb Fluorocarbon leader using a FG knot. I've got largish hands and it feels just nice, holding the whole reel with the thumb on the release clip. As this was my first time using baitcast reels, I was rather scared of getting 'bee hoon' aka birds nest on the reel. After several casts, I thought I got the hang of it and then it happened! Bloody backlash and wind caused a massive 'bee hoon' on the reel. Sat down and slowly untangled the whole mess. Fortunately, the braid was new and still stiff so I could untangle it in a short time. So, I'm categorizing this as 'user error' and not a reel fault. I also have to ensure that I don't reel past the FG knot into the spool as it will 'jam' when it hits the level wind entry. The drag was quite smooth when a Sagai was peeling out line. Whether I was reeling in fast or slow, the level wind helps tremendously in maintaining an even spool.

Rod review

The Shimano TCurve Revolution Travel Bait Cast rod is rated at 6-10kg, PE 1.3-2.2. When I was holding the rod in the tackle shop, I felt that it could be a tad heavy. It definitely felt heavier than the spinning TCurve Tropical that I've been using all these while. After pairing it with the Curado reel, it felt a bit unbalanced. The rod was 'too heavy' for the reel. I think the reel needs to be paired with a lighter rod for better balance. Bait cast reels are made for tossing lures or micro jigs around and fished one-handed. The rod loads up pretty well when the fish is on and it had no problem controlling and bringing up a Sagai but the wrist and hand became tired after a while. Rod butt was also short and basically meant you had to use your arm strength to do the lifting/controlling. Maybe I should try pairing it with my Shimano Talica II.